Alphabet agreed to pay $22 million in a class-action lawsuit over former US President Donald Trump and the shutdown of his YouTube accounts. According to a Wall Street Journal report, besides Trump, several other plaintiffs whose YouTube channels were also closed will receive an additional $2.5 million in damages.
Alphabet settled with Trump for $22 million
In 2021, Trump filed similar lawsuits against YouTube as well as Twitter and Facebook, arguing that these bans violated free speech protected by the First Amendment. Previously, Twitter (now X) paid about $10 million, and Meta paid $25 million to settle with Trump.
Alphabet’s decision to settle came right after the company sent a letter to the House Judiciary Committee criticizing government pressure on content moderation. It was also announced that YouTube would reopen accounts that had been previously banned due to misinformation about COVID-19 and election security.
The $22 million payment from Alphabet will be transferred to the Trust for the National Mall, an organization partnered with the National Park Service. The funds will be used for the construction of a ballroom in the White House built by Trump. Similarly, the settlement with Meta was directed toward this project.
The lawsuits Trump filed against media organizations are ongoing. During the summer, Paramount settled a $16 million lawsuit with Trump over a disputed interview with Kamala Harris, which was claimed to be misrepresented. Just three weeks after this settlement, the FCC approved Skydance’s purchase of Paramount for $8 billion.
